The Hopkinsville-Christian County Boys and Girls Club has been a key part of the community for 20 years, and at Wednesday’s Great Futures Luncheon, club members reflected on the nonprofit’s past and talked about what they have planned for the future.
Attendees packed the newly renovated Wade Family Gymnasium, and Will Bryan, the son of former Hopkinsville Mayor Wally Bryan, and John Miller, the former senior vice president of Boys and Girls Clubs of America, spotlighted how the club came to be.
Wally Bryan passed away in 2020, but during his life, he played an integral role in establishing the local Boys and Girls Club. Miller, who is also a Hopkinsville native, worked with Wally Bryan to bring the club to life.
Miller says he and Wally Bryan had a meeting that lasted nearly six hours, where the pair discussed starting the club and met with community members who could support the effort. Following the meeting, Miller says the club opened its doors in around a year.
Miller says Club Board Members Ruth Lynch and Bill Munday were a couple of individuals who supported the club’s creation. Munday says it’s been a privilege to be a part of the club’s beginning and to see its growth. He also says it’s amazing to see young people in the club explore and decide what career paths they want to pursue.
Club members shared what the nonprofit means to them and their career plans. Illiana Apolo-Ramirez is a 2025 Hopkinsville High School graduate and has been a club member for the past 13 years. She describes the club as the only stable place she has had in her life and thanks to the support, she has become the first person in her family to graduate from high school and plans to be the first to graduate from college.
Apolo-Ramirez says she will be attending Hopkinsville Community College in the fall to pursue a career in nursing. She is among five other club members who graduated from high school in the spring.
Boys and Girls Clubs of America President Jim Clark was also in attendance and called the Hopkinsville club truly special, and says there are only a few other clubs across the country that have the same technology and resources.
Clark says youth across the country are facing education and mental health challenges, but says club members are more likely to get good grades in school and pursue higher education in comparison to their peers who are not in the club.
Looking toward the future, Club Executive Director Terrence Davis says in fall construction is set to begin on their Tween Center, which will be a dedicated space or sixth and seventh graders in the club.
The Tween Center will be built in the existing club center between the gymnasium and the cafeteria. The area is set to have programs and activities focused on academic support, STEM, leadership and character development, arts and crafts, sports and fun.
The new center will also include the Care Closet, which will have clothing, hygiene products and food for club families in need.
During the luncheon, some club members also showed off their talents. One of those members was Payton Naylor, a high school junior who sang for attendees. His performance received a standing ovation, and Clark awarded him a scholarship to support his post-high school education.
